Trademark Laws

Are there any members of this group familiar with the earliest trademark laws? I am unclear as to exactly how they evolved and I am interested in finding out. This is what I think I know (I could be wrong and would like to find out if I am). The whiskey industry has always had a stake in protecting their name and its association with their product. After all the term "Brand Name" comes from the distillery or rectifier name branded into the barrel heads they sold. When the idea of registering trademarks came to America from overseas the U.S. government tried to impliment a set of laws to regulate trademarks based upon the British version of the law but it was found unconstitutional and had to be re-written. In the meantime the distillers were registering their trademarks in the trade magazines such as Mida's and Bonafort's. It was not until the late 1890's that the U.S. government got its act together and trademarks were registered with them.
Is all of this true? Do any of you know some good books that I could look into to find out.
Mike Veach